Secrets Uncovered and Decisions Made
by Celonhael
Summary: Sesshomaru learns something new about Izumi, and comes to a decision
1. Chapter 1

  
Lord Sesshomaru arose with the sun, standing on the edge of a tall cliff as the firey ball slowly rose into the air.  
The morning air was cool, but already starting to warm up. The heat was light on the skin, promising a warm day, or even a hot one. A faint mist hugged the ground far below, giving the illusion that the Demon Lord stood on the edge of the world, with only clouds below. The tops of the clouds seemed to glitter in the new sunlight, sparkling gently.  
A bird started to sing behind him.  
A light breeze sprung up, tugging playfully at his long silver hair, at the battle fur he wore over his shoulder, his Moko-Moko. He raised a hand, stilling the fur from waving too wildly.  
_The days grow warmer still. Fewer trees change colour now. Animals grow confused as to whether they should migrate or not. In all my years, I have never seen an autumn like this one. Is it the coming war? Is Keimetsu able to change the very weather? Is he that strong?_  
He gazed at the sun until it grew too bright even for his eyes, and he looked away.  
His gaze moved behind him, to where a small brown sparrow sat on a tree branch, still singing. To the Demon Lord it looked like every other small bird that flew in the forest.  
Sesshomaru spoke lowly, "Do you know where she is, then? Even now? Is she in her Lady's Celestial Palace, or does she walk the lands below?"  
The small bird stopped singing, cocking it's small bright black eye at him.  
Lord Sesshomaru turned away, scowling. He wasn't sure what he had expected, and he felt foolish talking to a bird.  
He remembered walking in the heavens with Izumi, as she showed him around her home. He remembered asking to see her room, and seeing all the images of birds she had collected over time. They meant a great deal to her.  
"These earrings are my most prized possession," the woman had told him, once. The earrings his own father had given her, a gift of friendship.  
He also remembered walking into what Izumi called the "Viewing room", and seeing the image in the giant glass sphere in the ceiling; a glittering symbol in the black night sky, motionless and shining like a beacon.  
A galaxy, she had called it.  
_"I come here and look at it"_ her voice echoed in his ears, _"It relaxes me."_

Jakken looked up as the Demon Lord walked into the camp. Rin had just awoken, and she was splashing water from a tiny pool onto her face.  
The liitle girl looked up at the Lord Sesshomaru, and beamed.  
"Good morning, my Lord!"  
Jakken spoke as well, "Would you like some tea, my Lord? I will have this fire going very soon."  
"No. Has Rin eaten?"  
"Not yet, Lord Sesshomaru," Rin wiped her face in the sleeves of her robe, "I think there's still some fried fish left over from last night."  
Above them, a bird suddenly burst into song, trilling sweetly. Sesshomaru regarded the bird in silence, wondering if this was the same bird he had seen out by the cliffside. How could one possibly tell them apart?  
Rin stood up, smiling, listening, "Oh, how beautiful!"  
Sesshomaru said nothing.  
Rin listened to the bird sing, as Jakken gently blew on the sparks, trying to get a fire going. The little girl listened dreamily, then turned and looked at Sesshomaru.  
"I wonder where Lady Izumi is, my Lord? I haven't seen her lately at all."  
Sesshomaru looked away, as if bored, hiding the fact he had been wondering the very same thing.  
"Rin," Jakken gently scolded, "the Lady Izumi is a very busy woman. She cannot just drop by all the time, you know."  
"Oh I know," Rin said softly.  
"Besides, she is probably still recovering from her illness."  
Sesshomaru stirred, looking back at the imp, "Illness?"  
Jakken peered at a tiny flame with one eye, the other closed tight, judging it, "Oh yes, she was quite ill."  
"When?"  
Jakken looked up at his Lord, "Why, don't you remember, my Lord? After the Lady Izumi went to yo-"  
The imp's eyes widened, and he began to stammer.  
"Er...I mean...I only _dreamed_ that the Lady Izumi was ill! Because the Lady wasn't really ill, my Lord, no, of _course_ not! Why would the Lady be ill? It's truly a silly thing to even suggest!"  
Sesshomaru took a step towards Jakken, who began to panic.  
"P-Pay no attention to me, my Lord! My mind is mixed up as of late! I don't understand anything of what I'm saying! W-Why, even right now, I have no idea what I'm talking about!"  
Sesshomaru scowled.  
Jakken panicked deeper, and turned to flee. The Demon Lord's foot planted itself squarely in the imp's back, and pinned him to the ground.  
"Jakken," Lord Sesshomaru's voice was very calm, and even polite, "Have you been keeping secrets from me?"  
Jakken began to flail his arms and legs, "Auugghh! My Lord, please! I did not mean to! I wanted to tell you at once, I truly did, but the Lady Izumi begged me not to tell you unless you asked! And you did not ask! I swear, I was not keeping secrets! Augh! Please, my Lord!"  
Sesshomaru pushed down harder on the imp, "Oh? So you listen to the Lady's commands, and not my own? Perhaps I should send you to live with her and be her vassal, seeing as you are so loyal to her."  
Jakken wheezed, "No, please Lord Sesshomaru! I am _your_ vassal, loyal and true! Please! You yourself told me I was to listen to the Lady Izumi when she gave me an order! I told her I would not lie to you, and she merely asked that I not bring it up unless you asked! But you- " _wheeeeze_ " - are obviously asking, so I will tell you!"  
"Lord Sesshomaru," Rin's small voice came to him, "Please don't be angry at Master Jakken. I'm sure he didn't mean to openly disobey you! Jakken just didn't really know what to do, I'm sure, being loyal to you _and_ being told to obey Lady Izumi!"  
"That's right!" Jakken grasped any help, "Please my Lord, forgive me!"  
Sesshomaru pressed down harder still, cutting off Jakken's air for a few seconds, then stepped away with a look of disgust on his face. He watched, cooly, as the imp crawled wheezing to his feet, trying to catch his breath.  
"You owe your miserable life to Rin, Jakken," Sesshomaru said, his voice like ice, "Until you prove yourself to me."  
"Yes my Lord, yes, of course! I will-"  
"You will tell me what happened," the Demon Lord's voice echoed in the clearing like a thunderclap, "And leaving nothing out."  
"Of course! Of course!"  
Jakken crawled over to crouch at Sesshomaru's feet, and began talking.  
"It was when you were..._interrupted_...by that horrible woman, Jujumin." Jakken dared not say abducted, or worse, kidnapped.  
"I found the Lady Izumi in the forest, and told her what had happened. I was so very worried, and I could tell Lady Izumi was worried as well. When I asked her what to do, she told me to stay and look after Rin, while she went to...see you."  
"Continue."  
"Well....a short time later, both you and her returned to the clearing."  
Sesshomaru gazed at the branches of a nearby tree, remembering. Izumi had come to...help him. At first he had thought she was seeking revenge for being struck....being pinned to a tree with the Demon Lord's own sword...but Izumi had showed no interest in revenge, at least not for her. She was, however, furious that Jujumin had captured Sesshomaru.  
He remembered her entering Jujumin's castle. The massive stone doors had exploded inward...how the water had boiled at her feet, the plaster on the walls melting. How the trees had burst into flames as she passed them.  
How Izumi herself had seemed almost to glow, like burnished metal, burning with an inner fire.  
_Goddess's Fire, she had called it._  
Jujumin's minions had called Izumi by other names....Amaterasu's Flame, the Highest Priestess....  
With each surge of anger from the woman, the castle had shuddered, thumping as if being struck by lightning, great jagged cracks appearing in walls.  
He had had no idea she was capable of such power...or anger....  
"My..My Lord?" Jakken spoke hesitantly. Sesshomaru came back with a start, aware Jakken had spoken, and had gotten no answer from him.  
"Repeat that."  
"I said that when she had made sure you were well settled, Lord, she left. I noticed that she was starting to sweat, and the night was actually rather cool. Realizing she had not told me the proper amount of herbs to put in your tea, I chased after her, and found her...kneeling on the ground, My Lord."  
"Kneeling?"  
"Yes. I first thought she was weeping, for her shoulders were shaking...and as I grew closer, I realized that she was in fact shuddering, shaking very badly. She was in great pain."  
Sesshomaru's brows twitched.  
Jakken continued, "I thought she was sick as well, and was going to tell you, or get Rin, but she begged me not to. She told me that...that she was being punished for her actions."  
"Punished. By whom?"  
"Her Lady."  
Sesshomaru fell silent. That made no sense. Amaterasu and Izumi worked so perfectly together...why would...  
Jakken saw the confusion on his Lord's face, and continued, "She went to aid you, my Lord, without the Goddess's permission. And because of that, she was being punished."  
Sesshomaru scowled, his voice oddly bitter, "Oh indeed?"  
"Well....she explained, My Lord, that the Goddess wasn't really doing it _purposefully_. But that when a God or Goddess takes a vassal, they have to agree to certain rules. One of them is that they can't enter combat or even take revenge for something, unless their Goddess expressly allows it. They will be punished for it, even if the God or Goddess doesn't wish it. Izumi knew this, but she still ran to your aid, angry, and seeking to punish Jujumin. So after it was over....she had to endure the punishment."  
"Oh poor Lady Izumi!" Rin sighed.  
Sesshomaru's eyes moved to the small bird again, once more singing in the tree.  
"I see."  
He turned, and started away from the clearing.  
"M-My Lord? Where are you going?"  
Sesshomaru paused, not looking back, "Do you truly think you should be asking such?"  
Jakken paled, "Of course not, my Lord, forgive me!"  
"Take care of Rin. You owe much to her."  
"Yes, my Lord."  
The Demon Lord walked from the clearing, into the forest.

Lord Sesshomaru walked in silence, lost in thought. His thoughts were in turmoil, and it was a very new experience for him. He wasn't sure what to do about it.  
_She acted without her Lady's permission. And was punished for this. And she knew she would be punished._  
A bird called in the forest.  
_She knowingly went against her Lady, to aid me._  
Another bird called.  
_Why? She loves her Lady so much. Why would she risk this?_  
An image came to him....Izumi, searching for the earrings she thought she had lost. The earrings his father had given her.  
The galaxy.  
_"It relaxes me."_  
He scowled.  
_Why does my mind run in circles this way? What is it I am searching for?_  
He moved along the path.

Sango draped a damp blanket over the line that was tied between two trees, "There. That should dry nicely."  
Kagome smiled at her over the blanket, "At least our wash dries pretty quickly now."  
"Yes, but still.....I hope the heat breaks soon. The ground is starting to dry out."  
Kagome nodded, and looked over her shoulder at her three male friends, gathered around a small fire. Shippo was making his way through a picture book Kagome had brought over for him. The hanyou was seated cross-legged under a tree, his back against the trunk. The sword kit Kagome had bought him a while back was open before him, and InuYasha had just finished sharpening the Tetsusaiga. Now he began to work the fine oil into the blade. Across the fire, Miroku was kneeling before a large pot on the fire, stirring the bubbling liquid within.  
"How's the soup coming, Miroku?" Kagome called to him.  
"I think it's just about done, actually," the monk's cheerful voice rang back to her, "It seems done, at any rate."  
Kagome walked over to the pot, and peered in, "It smells wonderful! I think it's great you're learning to cook, Miroku. It's a handy skill to have. You might not always have someone around to cook for you."  
The monk smiling charmingly at her, "A horrible thought. But you're right. There's really no reason a man can't learn to cook properly. I can't expect you and Sango to cook all the time, after all. Fair is fair."  
Inside, Kagome beamed. She had never thought, in a million years, that the once-womanizing monk could change. Casting a quick look over her shoulder at Sango, she thought to herself, _Of course, he has a great reason to, now, doesn't he? He's still trying to show Sango he's changed._  
Sango knelt beside InuYasha, leaning over to sniff at the pot, "It _does_ smell good, Miroku."  
"It's rather similar to making ink, to be honest. Although one doesn't use smell to guide them in making ink."  
"Making ink's harder," Sango laughed, "I made such a mess the first time I tried it."  
"Nonsense," Miroku said softly, "It was an excellent attempt. I used it, after all."  
Sango smiled at Miroku, who gently returned it. Kagome almost wiggled inside.  
"Well, let's eat!" Shippo said, putting his book away, "I'm starving!"  
Sango and Kagome served up the meal, Kagome gently chided InuYasha until the hanyou put aside his Tetsusaiga, and they all settled down to eat.  
"What time is Izumi going to show up, I wonder?" Shippo asked.  
InuYasha shrugged, but spoke, "She said shortly after sun down."  
"I wonder why she asked to meet Kohaku?" Sango asked quietly.  
"Maybe she just wants to meet your brother, Sango," Miroku said carefully. He was aware the demon-slayer was still very protective of her little brother.  
"Oh I know, I'm just being silly," Sango replied quickly, blushing, "I know Izumi would never..."  
There was a pause for a second, and then Kagome spoke, hesitantly, "Sango...what did you say Izumi said when you showed her that family painting?"  
Poor Sango blushed harder, "I felt like such an idiot. Izumi seemed almost upset. But it resembles her, so much. I remember seeing that old scroll when I was a little girl, and when I saw Izumi for the first time, I was so _sure_ it was her. But it lists the woman as the family protector."  
"What picture?" InuYasha asked, curious.  
Sango turned, and rummaged in her backpack for a second. Removing a scroll from a wooden tube, she handed it to him. InuYasha put down his bowl, and unrolled the scroll.  
He blinked, "That _is_ Izumi!"  
The woman on the painting was a perfect image of the woman they knew. The hair was a little shorter, and she was not wearing her usual long robes, and had nothing with any images of birds, but the face, and the eyes, were the same.  
"She said it wasn't, InuYasha."  
"Come on, look at it! It's her! Same eyes, same hair..." he frowned as he looked at the image. The scroll was indeed old....but Izumi herself said that she was ancient.  
" 'Family protector', huh? It's got to be her!"  
"Why would she lie, InuYasha?" Kagome asked, gently.  
InuYasha handed back the scroll to Sango, his words a little clipped, "Maybe she's not. Maybe _Amaterasu_ said she wasn't _allowed_ to."  
There was an uncomfortable silence.  
"InuYasha," Miroku said cautiously, "Amaterasu is a Goddess. It's really not a good idea to speak of her so-"  
"I'll speak of her however I want!" InuYasha suddenly retorted, his golden eyes angry, "She wouldn't let Izumi help my mother when we both needed her the most!"  
InuYasha tossed his bowl of soup aside, rising, and stalking away from the group.  
Miroku sighed, rubbing his face with his hands, "I never knew...."  
"He hasn't really talked about it," Kagome said gently.  
"Why on earth would the Goddess not allow Izumi to help InuYasha's mother? Weren't they close friends at one time?"  
Kagome nodded, stirring her bowl of soup with a spoon, her own appitite lessened, "Izumi and InuYasha's parents were very close, yes. His mother was like Izumi's sister, and InuYasha's father was like her brother. Izumi loved them both, very much, and when his father was killed, Izumi grieved terribly."  
"InuYasha told you this?" Miroku gently asked.  
Kagome nodded, "Yeah, he told me one night. He needed to get some things straight in his head, you know....anyway...so when Izumi had seen InuTashio buried properly, she went to try and find InuYasha's mother. She knew she had just given birth, and....she knew that they would need help. Especially because...of InuYasha."  
"Being hanyou," Miroku finished softly.  
Kagome nodded, "Izumi knew a woman with a child and no husband would have it hard anyway, but to have a hanyou child....but Amaterasu had blocked his mother from Izumi. Izumi had no idea where they were. And despite everything...she wouldn't let Izumi find them."  
"Why?" Sango asked. Shippo was all eyes as he listened.  
"Because," Kagome sighed sadly, "Amaterasu said that InuYasha was going to have to learn some things to become who he would become. That he needed to understand some things....things that only his life alone would teach him."  
"Like what?" Shippo asked.  
Kagome was silent for a moment, then spoke very softly, "Amaterasu said InuYasha was going to have to learn what it meant to be alone."  
There was another long silent pause, before Shippo spoke in almost a whisper, "Poor InuYasha."


	2. Chapter 2

Hot lava spewed from the ground, bubbling unhappily. The air reeked of sulphur and burned wood. No birds sang, no animals moved. It was the very edge of an active volcano.  
The Demon Lord walked to the strange-looking cave, and spoke aloud.  
"Totosai, are you there?"  
"Eh? What? Who's out there?"  
The small bent demon peered out through the cave opening, and peered around, his huge eyes squinting in the bright light, "I'm kind of busy working here. Whatever it is, I - Lord Sesshomaru!"  
Sesshomaru studied the Master Sword Maker, his face as cool as always, golden eyes seeming to peer straight into the old man's heart.  
"What can I do for you, Lord Sesshomaru?"  
At first the Demon Lord seemed like he wasn't going to speak, he just remained where he was, and regarded the old man in silence. Uneasily, Totosai started to sweat.  
_Was I supposed to make something for him, and forgotten? Oh no, he'll kill me for sure! Think, you old fool! A sword? No, he already has two. What else could he-_  
Sesshomaru spoke, "You created a sword for Izumi."  
Totosai paused, confused, "Ehhh....what?"  
"A sword. An odd-looking sword, do you not remember?"  
"A sword for...oh yes, the one made from the strange metals. Oh dear, isn't she happy with it?"  
The Demon Lord didn't answer him, but asked his own question, "What was it made for?"  
Totosai fell silent for a second, growing more and more confused. Sesshomaru had been there himself when the woman Izumi had come to claim it. Hadn't she told him?  
"Well, to be honest, Lord Sesshomaru, I don't know."  
Silence.  
Totosai continued, "She never told me, and in fact, I don't think she herself really knew."  
Sesshomaru turned away, looking out over the distance, "Yes...she said as much to me..."  
"Oh? Well...then why do you think I would know?"  
Sesshomaru's eyes were a cold gold, "You created the sword, I should think you would have some ideas of it's abilities."  
Totosai scratched under one arm as he thought, "Well, normally, yes, I would. But as you yourself said, it's an odd sword. The metals she gave me...she claimed one came from the moon, and the other from the sun. I've never encountered such metals before...very interesting to work with. As for any powers it might have...I can honestly say I have no idea."  
Sesshomaru considered this.  
Totosai looked down from his cave to the grounds below, lost in thought himself.  
"But I'm sure Izumi knows what she's doing, and I would say that that sword is extremely powerful."  
He looked back to the Demon Lord to judge his reaction, but blinked.  
Sesshomaru was gone.

"So...this is Kohaku."  
Izumi smiled down at the young boy, her head tilted to the side slightly as she studied him. Kohaku stood beside Sango, looking up at Izumi with a faint blush on his face. Sango was trying hard not to giggle at her little brother.  
"And you're...the Lady Izumi."  
"No," Izumi said softly, "I am just Izumi. Please don't call me Lady. It's a title I'm really not that comfortable with."  
"Uh...ok."  
"How old are you, Kohaku?"  
"I'm 13, Ma'am."  
"13," Izumi reached up, and removed the straw hat she had been wearing, the broad circular brim keeping the sun from her face, "A young man. Sango tells me you are looking after your village, rebuilding it."  
"Yes Ma'am. We're almost completely done now, we just need to plant a few more crops."  
The smile on Izumi's face faltered, and faded, and she watched the young boy very intently, almost searching inside him.  
"I am very sorry for your loss, Kohaku, and if I could have prevented it...I would have. Please, believe me."  
Kohaku blinked, but nodded, "Thank you."  
Sango frowned faintly, watching Izumi. The woman had said the exact same thing to her when they had met. It seemed more than something a kind stranger might say...the woman seemed honestly saddened by what happened. Despite what the woman said, the demon-slayer was starting to think there was more to the family painting scroll than Izumi was letting on.  
Sango promised herself that when the time was right, she would question Izumi further.  
Kohaku spoke, breaking her thoughts.  
"Lad - Miss Izumi, Ma'am?"  
"Yes dear?"  
Kohaku blinked for a second, startled by Izumi's familiar way of speaking, but plowed on, "May I ask how Kagura is?"  
Izumi blinked.  
Kohaku spoke on, "Sango told me that you said something about Kagura living near you now, away from Naraku. How is she doing?"  
"Kagura is doing rather well, Kohaku. She had to learn a few things, but all in all, I'm very proud of how she's doing. It's kind of you to ask."  
"Well, I...when I was...kidnapped by Naraku...I got to know her, and...she was never really all that bad."  
Izumi smiled softly, "No, she wasn't."  
"What's going to happen to her?"  
"I can't say, dear. That's up to her to decide. But at any rate, whatever decisions she makes regarding her life will be her own. She is free of Naraku now. She has discovered that, finally. He no longer controls her."  
Kohaku smiled, "Good."  
Izumi returned his smile.

Night fell.  
No stars shone this night; dark clouds gathered and threatened badly-needed rain, but none fell. Thunder grumbled to itself in the distance.  
Everyone slept.  
Almost everyone.  
Sango stirred at a loud complain of thunder, and peered around. The ground was dry, and their fire had been made very small so as not to set anything alight. It was more for light than heat, and it was still unnaturally hot.  
Movement caught her eye, and Sango turned to see Izumi sitting up by the small fire. She gazed into the depths, softly humming. Kirara sat in her lap, being petted.  
Sango slowly sat up, not wanting to disturb them, but Kirara's eyes had never really left her beloved Sango's form, and now the little feline looked her way, and gave Sango her unique little mew.  
Izumi looked at Sango as well, and smiled faintly, "A storm is coming."  
Sango rose, glancing at her friends, who were all asleep, even the normally alert hanyou. Making her way over to Izumi, Sango knelt, and glanced at the woman's face.  
Izumi lightly patted Kirara's head, "She knew I was troubled, and came to me to give comfort."  
"Kirara's always been very good at sensing when people are upset."  
"She's a very wise little thing."  
Silence for a little while.  
Sango spoke, her voice hushed in the darkness, "Why are you troubled, Izumi?"  
"The war. The climate. So much is happening, so quickly."  
Sango looked at the woman sitting beside her, "Yet you knew it was coming, didn't you?"  
"Yes..." Izumi kept her eyes on the fire, "And yet...it makes me uneasy to know it has begun."  
"I think I understand," Sango said.  
Izumi moved her gaze from the fire, and to the young woman beside her for a second. Then, startling Sango, she reached out, and gently brought her fingertips to just beneath Sango's chin. Izumi gently moved Sango's face so she could get a better look at her. Izumi smiled gently, "Yes...I believe you do, dear."  
Sango felt odd, with this woman studying her so closely, and yet it was like being touched by an aunt or some other female family member. She spoke before she knew she was going to.  
"Izumi, why do you seem so sad sometimes?"  
Izumi withdrew her hand, and looked back to the fire, "Oh....old thoughts, I suppose. When you've been around as long as I have....you have a lot of things you regret."  
"Are you really that old?"  
"I am. I am older than even I can remember. Centuries blend into each other. Sometimes I have to stop and really think back to something that has happened so long ago."  
Sango studied Izumi's face by the firelight, and spoke, "You're tired, aren't you?"  
Izumi blinked, looking at Sango in complete shock. Sango suddenly saw the years that Izumi carried, like a heavy blanket. She didn't look any older, but suddenly, Sango could practically _feel_ the weariness that clung to the older woman like a scent.  
Izumi looked back to the fire, and tried to regain her composure, tucking a stray strand of hair behind an ear, "I...sometimes...yes. I get tired. Very tired."  
"And it's...not the sort of tired sleeping can cure, is it?"  
"No, dear. It's not."  
Silence. A small branch cracked in the fire, popping.  
"Can't you.....stop?"  
"I will one day. When this is all over."  
Sango suddenly felt the conversation was moving to a place she wasn't sure she wanted it to go, and so she turned, and spoke, "That _is_ you in that scroll painting, isn't it, Izumi?"  
Silence.  
Sango looked back to the woman, and waited.  
Izumi looked tired, and paused, and then just nodded, closing her eyes for a second.  
Sango spoke, "I thought it was you."  
Kirara purred.  
"Do you hate me?"  
Sango looked at Izumi, worried. The older woman's eyes were so tired, and full of sorrow.  
"Hate you?"  
"The scroll lists me as your family's protector. And yet almost your entire clan was destroyed."  
Sango looked back to the fire.  
"I...don't hate you. But..why did it happen, Izumi? Was it another of those things that _had_ to happen?"  
Izumi took a long, deep breath, and then spoke, "I am not your family's protector, dear. I...knew your ancestor. But I was not your protector. I did not know what was going to happen...because I swear to you...if I _had_ known, I would have stopped it."  
There was silence for a while, and then Sango nodded, "I believe you. And I don't hate you. I wish you had been able to prevent it, but...well..you know what they say about wishes."  
Sango turned, looking back to where her friends slept, and where her brother slept, "We'll be ok. We'll be ok now."  
Izumi nodded, then spoke, "Go back to sleep, dear. It's very late."  
"What about you?" Sango turned back to Izumi, and blinked. The hint of weariness, the aura of tiredness, was gone from Izumi, hidden once again behind a veil. Izumi smiled at her, "I'll sleep in a bit. I don't need all that much anymore."  
Sango nodded, and rose. Kirara started to jump down, to join her, but Sango put out her hand, "No Kirara. Stay with Izumi for a while more."  
Izumi smiled, "Thank you, dear."  
Sango smiled at Izumi, feeling odd, and strangely lost, saddened. She returned to her bed roll, and lay down, staring up at the leaves as they danced in the breeze.  
Sleep was a very long time in coming.

Someone else moved in the night.  
The Lord Sesshomaru walked, lost in thought. His mind wandered of it's own accord, almost running around in circles, forcing him to think about things he would rather not.  
Why had Izumi risked her Goddess's punishment, to save him? He had thought that Izumi would, could, do nothing without Amaterasu's permission. She had even told him, once, that there was little she did that was not a direct order from her Goddess.  
So why did she risk herself in that manner, knowing she would be hurt?  
_Is it, because of my father?_  
It still felt strange to him, to remember seeing Izumi and his father, walking arm in arm, as he himself had done, talking to the woman. There had been no romantic love between InuTashio and Izumi, but there had been a deep love there as a family. They had been friends....more than friends, even. Almost like brother and sister, and it was apparent that Izumi loved InuTashio very much. She mourned his death, and even now, after all these years, she still felt grief.  
Was that why she had risked herself to save him? Because he was InuTashio's son?  
He frowned to himself.  
That image again, of himself, as a youth, sleeping on the ground beneath a tree....and Izumi, leaning over him, casting a protective spell around him.  
Touching the crescent moon on his forhead.  
He touched the item he carried within his robes. A small thing, and yet at times it felt heavy to him.  
Why had he had it made? What did it prove? For what reason?  
The moonless night cast no shadows, yet he moved in the darkness, seeing clearly. Small demons scampered out of his way, perhaps sensing his power, perhaps simply busy with their own lives.  
A night bird called in the distance.  
That was something else, another way he had changed since meeting her. It seemed he was more aware of the birds that lived in the forests now. Izumi's love for birds seemed to seep into everything, and now, for some reason, he was more aware of the birds around him than before.  
_She was born a human._  
Sesshomaru scowled.  
Why did that thought suddenly come to him?  
And why did he care?  
_She was born a human. She dug for clams with a stick, along the shoreline as a child. Poor, and wild._  
How then, had she been raised to Senmin? How had she gotten so powerful?  
Sesshomaru raised his arm, and gazed at it, as if studying it. She had returned the arm to him, as a gift from her Goddess.  
No...that wasn't quite right.  
_The idea of a gift had been from her Goddess....but the **arm** had been her idea. Because I would be facing a great threat in the days ahead. Is that true? Or because she knew I despised having lost it to InuYasha?_  
He clenched his fist.  
_Father, why is she haunting me this way? I do not understand._


	3. Chapter 3

The next morning, Sango arose with the others, to see that Izumi was gone. She had left no note, and no message.  
InuYasha stood, hands on his hips, looking annoyed.  
"She could have told us she was going!"  
Miroku opened his backpack, searching for something to drink, "InuYasha, I'm sure she's fine. It's not like she was kidnapped or something."  
"I know that!" the hanyou snapped, face blooming red, "I just...you shouldn't just leave and not tell anyone!"  
"You do it all the time!" Shippo remarked.  
"Shippo," Kagome said gently, "Be nice. InuYasha's just worried about her."  
"I am not!" he protested, his face getting redder.  
Sango softly laughed, "I don't know why you have such a hard time admitting you like her, InuYasha. We all do."  
"Yes," Miroku agreed, "She's like an aunt I never had. She feels like family, doesn't she?"  
"InuYasha's not used to having family around."  
"Well, now the time for him to start, don't you think?"  
"_Could you all stop talking about me as if I weren't here!?"_ InuYasha griped, crossing his arms.  
"Go and get us some water, please?" Kagome smiled, "I'm sure she's fine."  
Grumbling, the hanyou grabbed up the water pail, and stomped off down towards the river.  
Miroku smiled as he watched InuYasha pass him. When he felt he was safely out of ear shot, she spoke, "It's good for InuYasha to have family around."  
Kagome nodded. She remembered InuYasha telling her that he had learned that Izumi had wanted to raise him as her own, when she discovered that his mother had died. But that Amaterasu hadn't allowed it.  
Kagome was about to say something to Sango, when she noticed the other woman was watching the dissapearing hanyou with a frown on her face, and a distant look in her eyes.  
"Sango? Is anything wrong?"  
"What? Oh..no. Just thinking something, is all."  
"Are you sure?"  
"Of course!" Sango smiled at Kagome, and turned to rummage in her own backpack for something.  
But she was unable to get the memory of Izumi's tired face out of her mind, and a strange, tight feeling in her stomach. A feeling like something bad was on the way.

The sun was up, shining in it's full glory, another hot day.  
The Demon Lord stood on a cliffside, gazing down to the fields far below, watching the humans toil away.  
_They work like animals, all day, just to put food in their mouths or clothing on their backs. They are like insects.._  
He began to wonder why Izumi or Amaterasu even bothered fighting for this world. Was it truly worth a battle?  
_But then...she did say that this was but the battleground to save all the other planes. It would start, and end, here._  
In the human's world.  
Jujumin's angry voice suddenly came to him, as if on the wind, when he had been a prisoner in her palace, angry at Izumi..._"You came into this world as a squalling infant!"_  
_But she surpassed it...to become much more..._  
Jakken's voice; _"She knew she would be severely punished, my Lord!"_  
_She risked that..._  
A new voice, interrupting his thoughts.  
"Greetings, Lord Sesshomaru."  
Sesshomaru turned, not overly surprised to see Muzan walking towards him. A strange sensation settled over him, as if walking from the sun into a shadow, or from a sheltered place into a strong wind. A sensation that, someone other than the Demon Lord, might have called a sense of finalty. He knew, suddenly, that at some point, without his being aware of it, he had come to a decision.  
"And to you, Muzan."  
"It's a lovely day, is it not?"  
"It is, in fact, quite odd for this time of year. The wind should be colder by now. It is already autumn."  
Muzan said nothing. She walked over to stand beside him, looking down at the rice fields below, the workers moving along the grassy walkways, moving to and from the small, seperate water fields. Her beautiful brown hair was up in it's elaborate hairstyle, and her face was made up expertly. She was a beautiful woman.  
"All day they toil, the fools," she said.  
Sesshomaru spoke, curious, "You can see them from here?"  
Muzan smiled at him, "I am no human, Lord Sesshomaru. My eyesight is as good as yours."  
"Yet you were born a human, correct? Like Izumi."  
Her beautiful face clouded, "No, not like Izumi. Izumi was born a dirt-grubbing peasant from a filthy village, a nameless brat among other brats. I, Lord Sesshomaru, was born a Lord's daughter, born into a world of silk, pearls, and culture."  
"How, then, did you gain such power? Are you a Senmin as well?"  
Muzan drew herself up in her pride, "I am the same thing as Senmin, Lord Sesshomaru."  
Sesshomaru kept his gaze on the humans below, "And yet Keimetsu is not a true God."  
Muzan turned to him, suddenly angry, "Keimetsu, my master, is powerful enough to destroy all! He will be the last one standing, Lord Sesshomaru, and does that not make him the same as a God?"  
Sesshomaru studied her in silence for a moment, his eyes cool and dispassionate, then asked, "How is it you were taken in by Keimetsu?"  
Muzan's anger faded, and she looked away, "Personal memories, Lord Sesshomaru."  
Sesshomaru frowned, then spoke, "This weather. Keimetsu's doing?"  
Muzan turned back to him, studying him, then suddenly smiled. Her face was lit up with a radiance.  
He spoke, "Your smile is an affirmation. But why? What does he hope to gain?"  
"I cannot tell you that, Lord Sesshomaru, unless you swear fealty to my master."  
"I see."  
Muzan spoke softly, "Have you given any more thought to his offer, Lord Sesshomaru?"  
He watched her, "I have."  
She beamed, "And?"  
Sesshomaru looked back out over the cliff, "I am not interested."  
Muzan blinked, stunned. She stared at the Demon Lord in utter astonishment, "What?"  
"I am not interested."  
"I do not understand! You are a warrior! Surely you can see the rewards you would be offered!"  
Now he looked back at her, and his golden eyes were cold, "I am not a trained beast, to fight battles for another, and then be tossed rewards like scraps of meat or a bone, to a loyal hound. I am Sesshomaru, Lord of the Western Reaches. When I fight, it is for _my_ purposes, _my_ desire, and _my_ victories.  
Sesshomaru takes no orders from another."  
Muzan spoke, growing angry, "Do you not want to be on the winning side?"  
He studied her, his anger cooling to a curiosity, "Are you truly so confident you will win, Muzan? Are you truly so sure of the outcome?"  
"Of _course_ we will win! We are the strongest, the most powerful! We have Shadelings, and better, on our side! They have only humans, and one hanyou!"  
Sesshomaru spoke calmly, "You would be wise not to underestimate Izumi."  
Muzan's beautiful face darkened, "So. I should have known. She has swayed you to her side. Everyone loves Izumi, do they not? She is wise, she is kind, _she is perfect!_"  
Behind her, a rock trembled, and suddenly shattered as Muzan diverted the anger she was feeling into it.  
Sesshomaru watched her calmly, "Jealousy, Muzan?"  
The woman's voice was bitter, "You think you know her, Demon Lord? You think Izumi is kind and sweet and caring? Don't be fooled. Izumi is conniving and sly. She takes great pains to bring other people unhappiness."  
The Demon Lord spoke, a new insight coming to him.  
"You and Izumi share a past, don't you? This is why you hate her."  
Muzan's face suddenly evened out, a mask sliding into place with perfection.  
"So. You have chosen _her_ side."  
"No."  
Muzan blinked again.  
"Have you not heard anything I have said? I fight for no one but myself. My actions and motives are my own. I join no sides.  
I am the Neutral One."  
Muzan studied him in silence for a moment, then spoke, "So...are you saying we are not enemies?"  
Sesshomaru turned, looking out over the cliff again, sounding suddenly bored.  
"Unless you give me reason."  
"I see." She paused, then smiled, "In that case...I look forward to talking to you again, Lord Sesshomaru."  
She turned, and walked away into the forest.  
Sesshomaru remained where he was, watching the humans toil far below, unable to understand why they seemed to draw him now.

END

_Author's Note: This story was short, and I apologise. I am returning to school in a few weeks, and the last month has been taken up with preparing. In this story, I just wanted to set some ground lines, as it were. That Sesshomaru has decided not to join Muzan's side, that he is now aware of the risk Izumi took for him, and the sense Sango has, that something bad is coming._


End file.
